SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Peer-to-peer
car sharing serviceGetaround
today announced it has received $3.4 million in seed funding from
notable investors including Michael Arrington’s CrunchFund, Netflix
founder Marc Randolph, Time Warner’s largest shareholder Vivi Nevo,
Redpoint Ventures, and others. Additionally, Getaround released Version
2.0 of its iPhone app and announced significant momentum and adoption of
its service.

"I'm excited that Getaround is among the first investments at our new
venture fund,” says Michael Arrington, TechCrunch founder and venture
capitalist. “Getaround has the potential to change the way we all think
about and use cars, disrupting the automotive market along the way.”

In the few short months since the company’s TechCrunch
Disrupt NYC win, more than 5,000 car owners nationwide have signed
up to share their car through Getaround. Version 2.0 of the Getaround
mobile app has been completely rewritten for stability; offering an
enhanced search experience and new filters for quickly browsing cars.

Getaround reports that its top Bay Area car owners are on track to net
from $6,000 - $10,000 dollars this year, with the average revenue across
all active cars in the Bay Area tracking for approximately $4,000
dollars per year per car. Car sharing is enabling several car owners to
completely offset their monthly car payment through Getaround’s platform.

“Getaround is a great example of what we look for in a portfolio
company—tangible IP that can be efficiently commercialized to address an
existing market problem,” says Jeff Brody, founding partner at Redpoint
Ventures. “What Getaround has introduced is a solution that makes car
sharing convenient for users, while enabling car owners to make money
off their underutilized cars.”

In addition to the previously mentioned investors, the seed round also
includes angel investment from Barney Pell (Powerset founder), Matt
Mullenweg (Wordpress founder), Simon Rothman (eBay Motors founder, early
Tesla board member) and Farhad Mohit (Shopzilla founder, Bizrate
founder). Several funds also co-invested in the round alongside Jeff
Brody for Redpoint and Michael Arrington for CrunchFund, including Chris
Farmer for General Catalyst and Len Jordan for Madrona Venture Group.

“This level of contribution from a respected list of experienced
investors and the enthusiasm we’re seeing from consumers embracing the
Getaround service are clear indicators that the peer-to-peer model is a
perfect fit for car sharing,” says Sam Zaid, CEO at Getaround. “This
funding gives us the capital we need to build out our platform, continue
producing the cutting-edge technology that makes peer-to-peer car
sharing even more accessible and to plan our expansion into new
communities that are clamoring for the service.”

Getaround enables car owners to “un-idle” their cars and offset the cost
of vehicle ownership by sharing with friends, co-workers, and neighbors,
while people seeking cars are provided easy, affordable access to
vehicles everywhere. The Getaround Carkit™ combines GPS, Wi-Fi, and
keyless remote technology to allow safe and simple sharing of cars and
is the first device designed exclusively for peer-to-peer car sharing.

Getaround specializes in providing a seamless, peer-to-peer car sharing
experience by providing proprietary smartphone and in-car technology
that empowers users to easily and safely share vehicles. For as little
as $3 an hour, members can conveniently rent nearby cars by the hour,
day, or week; and save hundreds or even thousands of dollars on auto
payments, insurance, and maintenance. Car owners can offset the high
cost of ownership, while making a positive impact on the environment.
Sign-up today at getaround.com.